British soldier killed in Cyprus 'nightclub fight'
A British soldier stationed in Cyprus has been stabbed to death in a nightclub in the resort of Ayia Napa.
The Ministry of Defence confirmed a 19-year-old soldier from 2nd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, had died. His family has been informed.
Police said three British tourists had been arrested following a reported altercation with four off-duty soldiers in the early hours.
The MoD has banned soldiers from Ayia Napa's centre after past trouble.
The town is a popular destination for thousands of young holidaymakers.
The two British military bases in the former colony, which gained independence in 1960, are home to more than 3,000 personnel.
The dead soldier is reported to have been stationed at the base in Dhekelia, about 12 miles (20km) west of Ayia Napa.
Police spokesman George Economou said the soldier was pronounced dead on arrival at Famagusta General Hospital in Paralimni. A knife has been recovered and is undergoing forensic tests.
The three arrested Britons are expected to appear in court on Monday.
The Foreign Office said it was aware of the arrest of three British nationals in Ayia Napa and was providing consular assistance.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: "It is with great sadness that the MoD must confirm that a soldier... has died in an incident in Cyprus.
"An investigation is being conducted by Cyprus police and it would be inappropriate to comment any further. The family has been informed and our thoughts are with them."
More than 90 deaths in the US have now been blamed on Sandy, the huge storm that has left residents on the east coast struggling to recover.
Worst hit were New York City and New Jersey, with fuel shortages the latest in a series of post-storm challenges.
Campaigning for Tuesday's presidential election - suspended earlier in the week - has fully resumed.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg endorsed President Barack Obama, citing his leadership on climate change.
He said Sandy could be evidence of climate change.
Of the two candidates, Mr Bloomberg said, "one sees climate change as an urgent problem that threatens our planet; one does not".
"I want our president to place scientific evidence and risk management above electoral politics."
Food hand-outs
Sandy arrived on the US Atlantic coast on Monday night, bringing hurricane-strength winds, flooding and blackouts.
About 4.5 million customers in 12 states are still without power.
The storm could cost the US $50bn (£31bn), according to forecasting firm Eqecat, which has doubled its previous estimate.
In New York, where Sandy brought a record 14ft (4.2m) tidal surge, the National Guard is to deliver a million meals and bottled water to residents affected by the storm.
In the south-western New York City borough of Staten Island, at least 15 bodies have been recovered.
The storm, one of the biggest to hit the US in decades, swamped the low-lying district with tidal surges, lifting whole houses off their foundations.
Limited subway services returned on Thursday, though four of the seven train tunnels under the East river remained flooded.
Fares on commuter trains, subways and buses have been temporarily waived in a bid to entice commuters off the traffic-choked roads.
Many of the petrol stations in the city and the state of New Jersey remained closed. Fights broke out amid long queues on forecourts.
Amtrak plans to restart its East Coast service - the busiest train line in the US - on Friday.
In Hoboken, New Jersey, across the Hudson River from New York City, some 20,000 people were still trapped in their homes as floodwaters slowly receded.
Marcia Sikowitz: "I had three sons, now I have two"
Officials warned residents not to walk in water polluted with sewage and chemicals.
Some 1.7 million people remain without power in the state, where the National Guard is helping with evacuations and meal distributions.
The cyclone also caused havoc further inland.
The state of West Virginia has seen up to 5ft of snow in some areas, after Sandy collided with two winter weather fronts.
The number of dead in the US now exceeds the toll from the Caribbean, where 69 people were killed by Sandy.
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The death toll from Sandy keeps rising as swathes of the US East Coast battle to recover, three days after being smashed by the massive storm.
More than 80 people are now known to have died, 37 in New York City alone, and others remain missing.
About 4.6 million people are still without power, and there are fuel shortages across the region.
The National Guard is to deliver a million meals and bottled water to New Yorkers affected by the storm.
The number of dead in the US has exceeded the toll from the Caribbean, where 69 people were killed by Sandy.
The storm could cost the US $50bn (£31bn), according to forecasting firm Eqecat, doubling the previous estimate.
In New York, limited subway services returned on Thursday, though four of the seven train tunnels under the East river remained flooded.
Fares on commuter trains, subways and buses have been temporarily waived in a bid to entice commuters off the traffic-choked roads.
Many of the petrol stations in the city and the state of New Jersey remained closed, and fights broke out amid long queues on forecourts.
Marcia Sikowitz: "I had three sons, now I have two"
The city authorities are only permitting vehicles with three passengers or more to cross into Manhattan.
Amtrak plans to restart its East Coast service - the busiest train line in the US - on Friday.
In lower Manhattan, where Sandy brought a record 14ft (4.2m) tidal surge, subway services are still closed and hundreds of thousands of homes without power.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Thursday ordered the National Guard to help deliver some 30 tractor trailers of supplies to one million residents.
He has told relief workers to prioritise the elderly and poor, especially those living in high-rise blocks.
The death toll rose overnight as the extent of destruction became clearer in the south-western New York City borough of Staten Island, where at least 15 bodies have been recovered.
The storm, one of the biggest to hit the US in decades, swamped the low-lying district with tidal surges, lifting whole houses off their foundations.
Many residents in that community ignored official evacuation warnings and stayed behind to guard their homes.
Two boys, aged two and four, are missing after they were torn from their mother's arms by floodwaters, as they emerged from their vehicle.
Her 65-year-old daughter was unable to save her. Helpless neighbours heard their screams for help but could not reach them.
Also on Staten Island, John Filipowicz, 51, and his 20-year-old son John were found dead under debris in the basement of their home.
Breezy Point, in New York City, where fire razed 111 homes, was described by one onlooker as resembling a war zone.
Emergency crews are working to reach the most badly hit areas.
In Hoboken, New Jersey, across the Hudson River from New York City, some 20,000 people were still trapped in their homes amid sewage-tainted floodwaters.
The National Guard is helping with evacuations and meal distributions.
One frustrated householder reportedly inflated an air mattress and floated to Hoboken city hall to find out why supplies had not yet arrived.
Jersey City has issued an overnight curfew as well as a driving ban.
On Wednesday, US President Barack Obama took an aerial tour to inspect the damage to New Jersey's shattered Atlantic coastline.
He put campaigning for next week's US election on hold for three days to manage the disaster response.
The cyclone also caused havoc further inland.
The state of West Virginia has seen up to 5ft of snow in some areas, after Sandy collided with two winter weather fronts.
Women smokers who quit by 30 'evade earlier death risks'
By James GallagherHealth and science reporter, BBC News
Women who give up smoking by the age of 30 will almost completely avoid the risks of dying early from tobacco-related diseases, according to a study of more than a million women in the UK.
The results, published in the Lancet, showed lifelong smokers died a decade earlier than those who never started.
But those who stopped by 30 lost, on average, a month of life and if they stopped by 40 they died a year younger.
Health experts said this was not a licence for the young to smoke.
The study followed the first generation of women to start smoking during the 1950s and 60s. As women started smoking on a large scale much later than men, the impact of a lifetime of cigarettes has only just been analysed for women.
"What we've shown is that if women smoke like men, they die like men," said lead researcher Prof Sir Richard Peto, from Oxford University.
He told the BBC: "More than half of women who smoke and keep on smoking will get killed by tobacco.
"Stopping works, amazingly well actually. Smoking kills, stopping works and the earlier you stop the better."
Early death
The records from 1.2 million women showed that even those who smoked fewer than 10 cigarettes a day were more likely to die sooner.
Sir Richard said that it was exactly the same picture as for men.
The British Lung Foundation said the prospects for long-term health were much better if people stopped smoking before they were 30, but cautioned that this was not a licence to smoke "as much as you want in your 20s".
Its chief executive, Dr Penny Woods, said: "Stopping smoking can also be difficult to do - an estimated 70% of current smokers say they want to quit, so you shouldn't start and just assume you'll be able to quit smoking whenever you want to.
"The best thing for your health is to avoid smoking at all."
Prof Robert West, from the health behaviour research unit at University College London, said it was important to remember that smoking had more effects on the body than leading to an early death, such as ageing the skin.
"Around your mid-20s your lung function peaks and then declines. For most people that's fine - by the time you're into your 60s and 70s it's still good enough. But if you've smoked, and then stopped there is irreversible damage, which combined with age-related decline can significantly affect their quality of life.
"Obviously there is an issue around smoking if they want to get pregnant because it affects fertility and then there are the dangers of smoking during and after pregnancy."
The chartered health psychologist, Dr Lisa McNally, who specialises in NHS stop smoking services, also emphasised other factors.
Speaking to BBC News, she said: "There's the danger isn't there that people could almost take permission to continue to smoke to 30 or even to 40, but actually in my experience younger women quit smoking for other reasons other than life expectancy.
"They're more concerned about the cosmetic effects."
Are you a female smoker? Have you recently given up? Please fill in the form below if you are willing to be interviewed by the BBC.
